


Sanguis Et Animo

by camillaas



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Book 6: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Drarry, Heavy Angst, M/M, Magic, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-30
Updated: 2020-08-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:27:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26201893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/camillaas/pseuds/camillaas
Summary: Sanguis et Animo. Blood And Courage.Draco changes side when he takes the Dark Mark, joining the Order Of The Phoenix, and as new alliances and friendships are formed, the Dark Lord strikes again, and Harry almost falls. They’ll find out that blood and courage are the only things their side of the war needs to come out of this war alive.Blood for bonds, courage for love.(Canon from books 1-5, then takes a completely different path)
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Kudos: 3





	Sanguis Et Animo

Silence is scary, Harry thought as he walked down the empty hallways of the castle. The air felt thick with magic; He had always been able to feel it, but now that he was alone every emotion and sensation seemed to be amplified by the energy the place held. It was the 25th of August, exactly one week before class started again. He was now at his 6th year at the school of Hogwarts, but he had a feeling things were going to be different. He just couldn't place if for better or worse. All he knew is that he was sent two letters from the school during summer. The first one, from McGonagall, was the usual list of books and things to bring, the second one was a short note in Snape's handwriting, telling him to be at the school one week before the start of the term. Just like that, he took the Hogwarts Express by himself, and in only a couple of hours he was back at the school. Back home.

He turned the corner to go to Dumbledore's office, and found Snape at the entrance, waiting for him. As always, he was wearing a black gown that covered his whole, tall person, and as soon as he saw Harry, his expression got harder. Pressing his lips in a thin line, he stared at him with cold eyes and let out a whispered "Potter. Glad you came." Harry slightly bowed his head in respect, and looked right back at him. "Of course, professor. Curiosity got the best of me." Snape chuckled coldly, making Harry shiver. "Sure it did. The headmaster is waiting for you." Without giving the boy time to reply, he whispered to the gargoyle the password and as soon as it moved, he walked up the stairs. Harry followed him quietly, a hundred thoughts racing in his mind. Dumbledore's office didn't really change over the years; Harry remembered walking in there for the first time and being amazed by everything around him, and was pleased finding out the feeling didn't change. 

There was something reassuring about the headmaster's office that made him feel warm inside, and most importantly, safe. He shot one glare to the Sorting Hat that was sitting on a shelf, in a corner of the room. Both times he wore it, it always told him how great his school experience would have been if he was sorted into Slytherin, and both times Harry had thought that maybe he should have had let the Hat do his job without getting in the way. Maybe life would have been easier. "Harry, so nice to see you again," Dumbledore said while getting out of a big door at the very back of the room, probably his private rooms. "Nice to see you too, professor," Harry said while taking a seat in front of the man's desk, next to his potions teacher. The two wizards exchanged a look full of worry and something else Harry couldn't quit name, and both slightly turned towards him. "The reason why you're here, Potter, is extremely delicate," Snape started. His eyes weren't so cold anymore, the usual numbness was replaced with something else. Worry, fear, affection.

"You see, Harry" Dumbledore continued, "not everyone has a choice. A muggle was the one saying 'the only thing that makes life unfair is the delusion that it should be fair.' You see what I mean?" Harry was staring into the man's deep blue eyes, trying to find the meaning behind those words, and the voice to say that yes, he saw what Dumbledore meant. That answer to his question never came, and he stayed silent. He heard Snape sigh. "Harry, did you know that I was the first one to hold Draco, when he was born?" At the mention of Malfoy, the boy immediately looked up at his teacher. Snape grinned a little. "His father was still working with the Dark Lord, and Narcissa was alone. She loved Draco, but knowing that his future had already been decided hurt her too much. It must not be pleasing knowing your son will have to do some bad, bad things." The man was staring right into Harry's soul, and lightly touching his left forearm while talking. The boy caught the movement with the corner of his eye, and everything clicked. The dots were quickly connecting in his mind. He remembered seeing The Dark Mark on a Death Eater's left arm, at the Quidditch world cup, and the professor talking about Draco Malfoy's future made everything fall in place. 

There was silence as the realization of what that meant hit him. The Slytherin boy who had been his biggest enemy for the past five years now was a much bigger treat. He was a death eater, and Voldemort was probably going to use his mind to gather information about the school, the professor, Harry himself. After all, he had used Harry's mind too in the past. Voldemort was extremely experienced when it came to Legilimency, but Harry had learnt Occlumency the year before and was now able to block him out. But what about Draco? 

"You're letting him back here for this school year, aren't you?" Dumbledore sighed, "of course we are. We are going to help him through this. No one will ever be left alone or forgotten at Hogwarts, Harry." "And since I'm sure you're wondering about this," Professor Snape continued, "I've taught him Occlumency during summer and, unlike you, he has a real talent for it."

"If you could try not to hex him the second you see him, that would be helpful. You're allowed to tell your friends, if you'd like. I'm sure they're wondering why you had to come here one week before them. You can go to lunch now. All the teachers will be there shortly to join you," Dumbledore said, with a kind smile playing on his lips. Harry got up, bowed slightly to the two men and headed for the door. "Oh, and Harry," the headmaster's voice stopped him, and Harry turned his head back to him. "Remember that you can find allies and friends even when all hope seems to be lost."

The week alone in the castle had seemed, to Harry, the quickest week of his life. In fact, the empty hallways and all of Hogwarts' secret rooms never failed to amaze him. He found out so many things he didn't know about his school, so many empty rooms and many full ones. He had helped Hagrid with his creatures, professor Sprout with some plants and even got some extra lessons of potions and defense against the dark arts. "A war is coming, Potter," Snape had said the day they started practicing. For every meal he got to sit at the teachers' table with all of his professor, and he had got to know their human side, that was not often showed to the students. Even if being alone in the castle was amazing to Harry, he could not wait to hug his friends again. The 1st September found him already seated at the Gryffindor's table in his uniform, waiting for Hermione and Ron to show up. Only a few minutes later, Harry found himself in a bone-crashing hug as Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck. He closed his eyes, just taking in everything his friend was. 

"I've missed you so much, Mione," he said while gently playing with her curls, something he had gotten used to do with time. He and Ron hugged too, laughing as they both almost fell to the floor while doing so. They sat down so that Harry was in front of them both, and waited for the sorting ceremony to start. "So, are you going to tell us why you had to come so early or we'll have to guess?"Hermione said, the curiosity was clear in her voice. Harry opened his mouth to speak, but as the prof McGonagall requested everyone's attention, he whispered a simple "later" and turned his head towards the ceremony. 

As he did that, his eyes caught sight of blonde hair, looking even whiter at the lights of the great hall. They were perfect as usual, not one hair out of place. Harry let his eyes wander over Malfoy's face, and he did not like what he saw. Usually seeing his nemesis in such conditions would have made him laugh, but knowing the situation he just felt bad for him. After all the reason the Dark Lord was back and taunting not only his life but Draco's too was his fault. Right? The boy looked tired. Not the kind of tired after a long week, but as if he hadn't slept in weeks. Dark circles were around his eyes, and every line of his face looked hard, as if he did not intend to relax for one second. He was looking down at his empty plate, barley caring when someone was sorted into Slyherin. Harry also noticed that he kept fixing his gown nervously, especially his sleeves that were a little longer than the ones of the gowns they all wore. Was he scared someone was going to notice the dark mark? Probably. Harry wondered what it looked like up close, all the details at place, marking the boy's pale skin. 

The ceremony ended, and when Draco finally looked up, he caught Harry's eyes. For a moment they just stared at each other, Draco with a small frown of confusion on his face. He slowly raised an hand, and waved at the Slytherin in an almost imperceptible way. The boy looked even more confused, but decided to ignore Harry by turning to Zabini and starting a conversation with him. 

The banquet was amazing as usual, the food was great and getting the chance to finally catch up with his friends put him in a much lighter mood. When the food disappeared they all got up, and started to make their way out of the great all with all the other students, heading for the Gryffindor tower. "There is a lot I've got to tell you guys, but you have to try and be understanding. It's not a simple situation and it's kind of odd." Ron and Hermione exchanged a confused look, then followed Harry into their common room. Harry undid his tie as soon as they walked in, letting it hang at his neck. Students were sitting around, talking and laughing as they showed everyone pictures from their summer trips. They took place in front of the fire, on one of the empty couches. Harry was nervous. How was he going to tell his friends everything he had learnt in the past week? He felt Hermione's hand take hold of his, and looked up at her. "Take your time Harry, we're here to listen." Harry smiled a little, and took a deep breath . 

When Harry finished talking, everyone had already gone to bed, and the warmth of the fire was becoming weaker and weaker. Some lanterns were still lit around the common room, but the brightest light came from the pale, full moon looking down at the castle. He had taken his time, and even stopped every 30 minutes to take a sip of water. Everything had been said, not even one detail was left out. Now, two hours and seven minutes since they stepped in the tower, he had told Ron and Hermione everything they needed to know. The girl's eyes were bright with concentration as Harry talked, and he knew she was taking everything in and processing it at her usual, fast thinking speed. Ron on the other hand, looked a bit lost, and mad. 

"Are we really going to just stand here, going to class with a Death Eater, and hanging out as if nothing happened?" Ron had bitterly said after Harry stopped talking. 

"Ronald! Is that really the only thing you can think about right now?"

"Well, yes! He's a bloody death eater Hermione. He's working for you-kno-who!" 

Harry quietly watched the exchange, moving his eyes between his two best friends. 

"Harry said he's not working for him."

"Maybe he's lying! How can you be so sure?"

"I'm not, but I trust Harry."

Harry ran an hand in his messy hair, just wanting for the two to stop fighting so they could all go to bed. It had been a long day. Not tiring, just long, and the thought of his soft, warm bed almost made him fall asleep right there on the couch. He wasn't listening to them anymore, he was just thinking about his pillow. He was brought back to reality when Ron got up, and stormed upstairs. Hermione sighed next to him. "I'm sure he will understand, he's just being childish right now." She also got up, kissed Harry's cheek and walked over the girl's dormitory. 

—

One thing Draco had come to appreciate during summer was the size of the Malfoy's manor. When he was younger it had always felt too big for him, especially because his parents barley thought about keeping him company, and he was alone most of the times. But now that the Dark Lord had made it his headquarters, he was grateful for the fact that he had his own wing, where he could sleep and eat and do his homework without being bothered by anyone. He had close encounters with the Dark Lord four times, two of those were meetings with all of his closest Death Eaters, to discuss the moves to get to Dumbledore down and, in the end, Harry Potter. The first time Voldemort had wanted a private meeting with Draco, he had talked to him about loyalty. It was the 4th of June, one day before Draco's 16th birthday. On that day he was also told he was going to get the Dark Mark by the end of the month, and the boy was sure they decided on that specific day just so he could spend the worse birthday ever. He stayed in his room all day, thinking. 

The second time, Draco was given the Mark, in front of every other Death Eater living in his house. When he thought about it he could still feel the burning sensation of the Mark appearing on his skin. It was not the usual kind of pain, but the deeper one that gets to your head and makes you forget everything until its gone. 

Now it was different. Now he was back at Hogwarts. He was safe. Everyone had gone to sleep already, but he was curled up under a green blanket in front of the fireplace. Even if he did get pretty good at Occlumency during his secret meetings with Severus, sleeping always scared him. What if Voldemort made his way into his dreams anyways? 

"Draco?" he turned his head only to find Blaise looking at him, in a pair of trousers and a green shirt that made his eyes pop out a little. "You should come to bed, we've been over this. Rest is important." The blond boy looked back at the fire, sighing. "I don't feel safe when I'm asleep, I feel vulnerable." 

Blaise was his best friend, the only one he opened up to. It was probably because they had known each other since birth, or maybe because during the past two years they had bonded more than ever over their sexualities. In fact, they were each other's first kiss and firsts experiences, but they never took it to the next level. They had never wanted a relationship with each other, only wanted to experiment. That's how they found out they were both gay, and girls didn't really matter when it came to romance. 

The boy sat down next to him, "I know you don't, Draco, but we're at Hogwarts, with Dumbledore! No place is safer than this right now..." 

"I know Blaise, I'm just scared he'll be able to see into my mind and understand what's going on. What if he breaks through my walls? I'm good at Occlumency but he's the dark lord." Draco took a deep breath, and closed his eyes trying to relax as much as his mixed emotions allowed. He could feel his friend's eyes on him, but didn't say anything. "You'll be okay. Goodnight Draco." Zabini said after a couple of minutes of silence. He then moved back towards the boy's dormitory, leaving Draco to drown in his own thoughts. 

—

One full week at Hogwarts, and Harry was getting his hopes up for the year. The subjects' programs seemed a lot more interesting than the previous years, and a lot more useful. Professor Snape had taken over the Defense Against the Dark Arts class, and one of Hogwarts' ex-professors, Slughorn, had come back to teach potions. Everyone seemed unhappy about the change, but Harry was not. He knew Snape was going to teach them what they needed to know, he had already started with Harry during the last week of summer, and he had learnt more during that week than in five years of school. He needed to know how do defend himself and how to attack properly, everyone did. War was coming and he could feel it. 

The Slytherins were almost bearable during the week of classes they had together, and Harry was sure the reason why they had most hours with them had something to do with the houses' unity talk he had with Mcgonagall, one evening during dinner. The comments and jokes didn't stop, but some of them were really making an effort. Malfoy seemed to be one of them, and Harry had noticed. In fact, he mostly kept to himself, and stopped with the bullying and the name calling. He didn't interact with the Gryffindors at all, and only with Pansy Parkinson or Blaise Zabini when it came to his housemates. 

"Mister Potter?" Someone waved a hand in front of his eyes, snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked around the potions class, where they were having lesson, and realized almost everyone was staring at him. "I'm so sorry, professor, got lost for a moment." Harry said, giving Slughorn his usual, fake smile he put on in public. It usually worked, cause he was Harry Potter, after all, and in fact it did. "It's uh, it's okay mr. Potter. One point from Gryiffindor." Someone from Slytherin scoffed at that, but Slughorn ignored them. 

"So as I was saying, Felix Felicis, or Liquid Fortune, is a complex potion to brew. It supposedly brings luck to who drinks it, but one mistake and it could be your death sentence. That's why today, whoever makes the best Draught of Living Death, wins one made by me."

Everyone eyed with avidity the little phial Slughorn was holding, and opened their books. "Ah, not so fast, kids. You'll be working in pairs. Whoever is in front of you will be your partner. Come on, get started!" The professor clapped once his hands and went sit in a corner, letting the students start on their work. Harry didn't need to look up at his partner, because he was soon approached by it. Malfoy stood next to him, looking at him with cold, hard eyes. He didn't say anything to him, just glared at him and started talking the ingridients from one of the shelves. 

Harry was, for sure, confused. When Draco came back to the table he looked up from his book, and fixated his eyes on the side of the other boy's head. "Aren't you going to read the process?" He asked, calmly. He received another glare from the Slytherin, and a forced chuckle. "I know it by heart. The first time I brewed this I was 12." Harry's eyes widened slightly. "Alright..." 

"Cut these," Draco said passing him some of the ingredients. Harry took the knife, but was stopped by Draco's hand harshly grasping his wrist. "You do need the recipe, Potter. Cut them the right way or I'll make you drink this when it's finished." Harry could just nod his head, and they stopped talking. 

They were quiet for about half an hour, just working and mixing the potion, around them was the chatter of the other pairs, talking about summer and the upcoming weekend while working. "So uh, did you have a good summer?" Harry asked quietly, knowing the risks of trying to start a conversation with someone like Draco Malfoy. He heard a laugh, that did not sound genuine, but forced and unnatural, "as if you didn't know already," he bit, fixing his gown. 

Harry gave a small nod, he did know. He looked up at the boy standing next to him, who was staring at the potion, mixing slowly. He was slightly taller than Harry, but just as thin. His hands looked soft and smooth, and everything he did, he did it with grace. His hair was perfect except for a small strand falling over his eyes, and his lips were pressed in a hard line. Harry finished cutting and preparing all the ingredients, placing them on a plate in a tidy manner, so they were not going to confuse. Draco whispered something that sounded like a "thank you", and for the next half hour silence took over them again, as they finished their potion. 

Slughorn started walking around, looking at the almost finished potions on the tables. They still needed some resting time over the fire before being completely ready, but they looked pretty good. Slughorn finished his tour, and everyone clapped as he proclaimed Harry and Draco winners, to no one's surprise. The professor gently patted their shoulders. "Good job kids. Professor Snape did inform me about your talent, Mr. Malfoy," he said with a gentle smile, then moved his hand in a dismissing move and everyone started gathering their things. Hermione and Ron were, in seconds, at his side as they walked out of the dungeons. 

"How was it? Working with Malfoy, I mean. Did he give you a hard time?" Ron asked. 

Harry shook his head, "it was okay. He's really good, and we barley talked anyways." Hermione made a face at that, "not surprised, he barley talks to the Slytherins anymore, why would he talk to us?" She chuckled, "working with Pansy wasn't too bad either." 

The week went by slowly, and Harry, Ron and Hermione created their own routine. After morning class they had lunch, and then took a walk in the park, sometimes going over to Hagrid's. After afternoon class and dinner they retired in the library to do their homework until it closed, and when it did they went sitting in front of the fire in the common room, either way to finish their studies for the day or to chat. They never talked about what happened during summer, or what was for them in the future, mostly because Hermione and Ron knew better than to push Harry into conversations, especially when they involved Death Eaters and Voldemort. 

Harry's dreams were clean, and even if some days he did feel like someone was trying to get into his mind, he always pushed them back with ease, and didn't give it much thought. Something that didn't go unnoticed to anyone, that was definitely a change, was the presence of Dumbledore calmly walking around the hallways during lessons' hours. It wasn't usual of him, but no one dared to ask him why. 

Harry, in fact, felt even safer knowing Dumbledore was keeping an eye on them all by showing them he was there, present and ready to protect them. As Friday approached, the excitement for the weekend at Hogsmeade increased. Harry, Ron and Hermione had planned to sleep until 8am, go for breakfast and then head to the little city, to look around the shops and get a butterbeer. On Friday night Harry found in his gown's pocket the little phial of Felix Felicis he was given by Slughorn. He had completely forgotten about it. He sat down on his bed, examining the clear liquid, and wondering how much luck he was going to need to survive another year at Hogwarts.

**Author's Note:**

> first work! I’ve been working on this fanfic for a couple of months, and I’m so happy to finally share it. Keep in mind I don’t own the characters in any way. If i did, a lot of things would be different, but all rights go to JKR. 
> 
> Keep also in mind that my first language is Italian, and you may find mistakes in my work. If you want (please, do!) to point them out, or give me some piece of criticism or advice, I’ll accept it as long as it’s done with kindness.  
> Please leave a comment, I’d love to know what you think.  
> -cam


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